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The Twilight Years Are Here

The Twilight Years Are Here

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Kidney Update & Dad Tries to Score a Date



On Friday (June 15th), we went to see the kidney specialist. We couldn't have hoped for better news than we got. Dad's lab work was amazingly good. His kidney function rose again and is now at 47%. You may remember that he was at 45% back in March and 32% last year. He is making actual progress which is something that is virtually impossible. He is considered a medical miracle by many. For the first time in years, instead of his regular quarterly check-up, he doesn't go back until the end of December. That's 6 whole months!

Dad was in rare form during the visit. He had the doctor laughing the entire time. One thing I like about Dr. Jimenez is his genuine interest in Dad's well being. You can tell he really likes Dad and enjoys their visits.
At one point, the doctor asked Dad if he had any complaints. Dad launched into his diatribe on having his driving privileges taken away. Dr Jimenez has heard this many times before. Dad said he didn't know why they won't let him drive just that he isn't allowed to. He followed it up by seriously announcing that Dr. Bolton was the one who did it... "the son-of-a-bitch!" Our eyes locked for a brief instant before we both looked away and burst out laughing. Dad crossed his arms over his chest and jutted his chin out, "Well, he is!"


On our way out, I had to stop and make his next appointment. Dad sat down in the waiting room and struck up a conversation with an attractive lady that looked to be in her late 60's or early 70's. I was busy talking to the girl at the desk for several minutes. She was telling me how much she enjoys listening to Dad talk because he is so funny. That she looks forward to his appointments. Feeling like a proud mother who receives compliments on their unruliest child, I thanked her for her kind words and turned to leave.

Now clearly focusing my attention back on Dad, I turned just in time to hear him ask the lady he was talking to for her phone number. She started digging in her purse (I presume looking for a pen but I'm not sure). He suggested they could go out to dinner some night. Then he explained that he can't drive so somebody else would have to. "They took away my driver's license and made me sell my brand new Lincoln I had just ordered from the factory because I have a disease." Looking my way, he asked, "Sweetheart, what do I have?"

I smiled, "Alzheimer's. Dad, you know if you want to go out to dinner or anywhere else, all you have to do is ask and I will gladly drive you". I smiled at the lady as she snapped her purse shut. She smiled at me and nodded, telling Dad it had been nice talking to him and wishing him a good day.

As we walked out the door, I thought to myself how easily he could forget from one moment to the next. But he stopped me in the hall and turned to me with a twinkle in his eyes. "One of these days, I might surprise you and find a lovely lady to run away with since you won't run away with me."


I pulled into the driveway and reached to turn the ignition off. Dad stopped me, "Where are we going now?" I replied home. He asked if we could go get a burger. As I backed out of the driveway, he said he wanted to go to Appleberries (his nickname for Applebee's). As soon as we entered the building, he needed to go to the restroom. I pointed to the table where we would be sitting and then directed him to the restroom (the table is ideally situated as he can't get far from the restroom without me seeing him). I ordered our drinks and said I wanted to wait until my companion came back before ordering.

When I finally saw him about 20 minutes later, I went to assist him. We made it within 4 feet of the table before he apologized and said he needed to go back to the restroom. I asked if he would like me to order and he said, "Cheeseburger & fries," as he wandered back the way he had just come.

Another 10-15 minutes went by before I heard his voice, slightly shaky and a bit panicky, asking a waitress, "Where's Shari? I can't find Shari! Where is she?" I jumped to my feet and made it to the corner at the same time he did. His relief was visible as soon as he saw me. I assisted him to our table and we sat down. Within minutes, he was fidgeting and kept saying, "It really is cold in here, isn't it? Why is it so cold in here? I'm freezing."

Finally, I turned to him and asked if he would rather get the food to-go and take it home to eat. Of course, he thought that was a wonderful idea. I called the waiter over and asked if he could please change our order to go. 5 minutes later we were headed home.


Everything was great when we got home. For the second day in a row, Dad had not taken a nap all day. He was lucid and in good humor... until just before dinner time. As the sun sank lower on the horizon, he became disoriented and confused. He kept asking me questions like "What time do you go home? How long have you worked here? What do I pay you? Who are you married to? What does your husband do for a living? Where did you come from?" etc. For over 3 hours, I answered the same questions over and over.
By the time he finally crawled into bed, I think we were both equally ready for the day to end.

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